Commanders!

We are closely monitoring the Art of Strategy event and are amazed to see how many of you are taking on the roles of Tankers and Strategists. We are glad that you are enjoying the opportunity to try the new gameplay, and we want to keep refining Art of Strategy to give you the best experience.

On April 28, we will introduce a small but important change to help balance the event. We will increase the number of AT Guns, Flamethrowers, and MG Turrets that a Strategist can deploy in the 1 vs 7 format, from 4 to 5.

In pursuit of the same goal, we will also disable Airfield and Steppes in 1 vs 7 format for now. These are open maps, where Tankers have a great freedom of maneuver, making it very difficult for the Strategist to counter their attacks. The remaining maps allow the Strategist to put up a real good fight, and that's exactly what all of us are after in the Art of Strategy.

Strategists must do many things that they have never done before in World of Tanks, and right now, many are understandably having a hard time against Tankers. A Strategist must develop a battle plan, select and deploy defenses, control 7 vehicles, and watch over the entire battlefield to block enemy advances and create openings for their own forces. These demands make the role exciting, but it is no easy task. At the same time, Tankers, for the most part, are playing World of Tanks as they have for years—same controls, a single vehicle, same patterns.

By increasing the maximum number of defenses for the Strategist in 1 vs 7, Art of Strategy battles will be more enjoyable for everyone. For the Strategist, it will be easier to concentrate on active participation in battle—giving vehicle orders and providing direct control—because the additional defense will offer passive protection across the battlefield. For the Tankers, battles that were sometimes too simple will become more challenging and interesting.

In addition to this change, we want to take the opportunity to remind Strategists of a couple tips that may help achieve more victories:

• Let your defenses do their job. Don’t place your vehicles too close to the enemy forces at the start of a battle. Whittle down the Tankers first with fire from your defenses, use your vehicles to support and protect them, and then finish off the remaining opposition.
• Vision is everything. The sooner you spot Tankers, the sooner your long-range defenses can deal damage to them. Don’t forget about Watchtowers! Combine them with Gun Turrets and MRLs to weaken enemy forces long before they even reach your vehicles. Light or fast medium tanks are great scouts too!

Stick to these rules and victories in the event will be sure to follow.

Good luck on the battlefield, and Roll Out!